Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-11-19

NOUS whole by anything short of the ma
gician's art.
Tapestry painting must not be con-
founded with the so-called "dye painting"
on burlaps or canvas, which does not in the
least resemble tapestry. The latter is
painted with diluted oil colors, and is on
the surface of the fabric only, which is
often clogged with paint and is always
more or less stifiened by the action of the
oil and paint. Tapestry painting, on the
contrary, leaves the fabric as flexible as it
was before it had been painted upon at all,
and the weave as clearly distinct, because
the colors used are really dies, which sink
into the material and become part of it.
The canvas is woven in imitation of the
celebrated Gobelin tapestry, and is of va
nous degrees of tineness, according to the
style of work required. 1t is made of pure
linen, is very firm, plant and durable
The finer repped grades are pure white,
and are used for delicate subjects. The
coarser makes are ecru, and are suitable
for draperies, and so forth, where fine
work is not desired. Besides these is a
wooden tapestry canvas, which is used for
upholstery. 1t somewhat resembles wooden
rep, and where considerable space is to be
left bare of ornamentation is chosen in
preference to the linen canvas.
\ series of articles by Emma Haywood
in the art Amateur gives the process of
tapestry painting in detail, and is here pre-
sented in condensed form for such of the
readers as may wish to try their hands at
the work. The proper French dyes are
sold in liquid state in bottles, and consist
of thirty-sIx colors, which are named after
the artists colors they represent, although
they are not really derived from the same
sources, and do not really answer the same
purposes. The beginning will not by any
means require the whole set. The list of
colors likely to be useful at first is as fol-
lows: Two chrome-yellows, light and me-
dunn; gold yellow, cadmium, Prussian
blue, cobalt, spring-time green, emerald
green, brown red, raw sienna, raw lumber,
Italian earth, Cassel earth, pink madden,
vermilion, neutral tint and flesh tint.
The brushes used are the stiff, short
bristled hog-hair brushes sometimes used
In oil painting. Ten or dozen of these
will be needed, Of various shapes and sizes,
some round ones for scrubbing in flat surf
aces; others pointed and chisel shaped.
The worker is warned against accepting
any colors except those of genuine French
make, bearing the foreign label. The imi-
tations are all Opaque and entirely unlike
the French dyes, which are always clear.
The canvas, too, must be genuine tapestry
canvas, and not the twilled or duck-woven
stuff that Is sometimes sold under the
name of tapestry.
To return to the outfit Several small
cups or glasses for mixing and diluting the
tints Will be needed. The medium for
this purpose comes in the form of CRYSTALS,
and is prepared by dissolving a small
quantity in warm water. The medium
fixes the colors and preserves their
strength. With these materials which
need not be expensive, the beginner may
proceed with some assurance to choose a
design. Foliage is recommended for a first
effort, but this may be utilized in some
way; there is no reason why the beginner
may not do tolerable work The writer
recommends a chair-seat painted with a
begonia leaf design for first work; or a
mantel-border with the same design may
be selected. The canvas will be sold in
any reasonably shaped piece, so there is
no necessity for buying more than is re-
quired.
liz iiS<Nt tililiS 10 W SlIGiC1 lHt CANVAS
evenly on frame (which any carpenter
will make for a trile), taking care to
stretch the ribs of the material even and
straight, otherwise the canvas will straight
en- itself when it shall come out of the
frame, and the picture will be all awry.
Make careful tracing of the design on
the canvas by means OF tracing paper or
the bouncing method both of which are
too well understood to require description;
and then with chisel-shaped brush go
over the entire outline, making it rather
darker than desired when finished. Leave
the outline to dry for an hour or two; pre-
pare some medium according to the direc-
toes given, and proceed to mix the tints
required. For the dark green of the leaves
mix Prussian blue and raw sienna, and add
a little of the medium Next mix the
darker chrome with a dash of Prussian
blue and Il little of the medium. For the
pale shade use spring-time green and light
chrome in different proportions For the
lightest parts a cool blue tint is wanted,
for which turquoise blue much diluted will
answ er; cobalt, with a mere trace of ncu-
trail tint, and much diluted, will also pro-
duce it. Two or three shades of this color
will be needed.
Begin coloring by scrubbing in the palest
blue for the cool lights Leave the high
est lights untouched for the present. Scrub
the tint well in lest it dry spotty. When
the broader lights shall have been covered
use the next tint, while the first is still
wet; the two will blend beautifully. Now
the work must dry again before going on
with the yellow-greens. Proceed with the
yellow-greens as with the blue-greens, be-
ginning a little way over the part already
painted. As you approach the darkest
parts put them in boldly, but take care
that they do not spread too far into the
lights. These tones will require retouch
ing. When this shall have been done at
tend to the veining of the leaves. In the
begonia these veins are nearly always red.
For this work take vermiEon, diluted
slightly except for the deepest markings,
when it may be used pure, and with an
outlining brush paint carefully the net
work of veins. The painting must be per-
fectly dry before this veining should be
done, when the color will keep its purity
and the effect will be charming 1t must be
borne in mind that color once applied is
permanent, and cannot be removed, and
that extra care must therefore be used in
applying it.
Directions for other work will be given
in a later Philadelphia Record.